Bit of a False Start maybe?

As my little cluster of followers will be aware, I started this blog to coincide with a bit of long awaited personal freedom having spent 13 years being at home with the Children and I do feel that I got off to a good start. I took up Yoga and put a lot of effort into trying to shake off the guilty feelings I am prone to everytime I do something just for me but circumstances are changing again and I'm going have to adapt to a new role and a new lifestyle which will make it even more of a challenge to find time for myself.
Ever since our eldest started school I have been getting more and more disheartened by our experiences of the education system here in the UK. We have experienced two very different primary schools, the first being a small Church of England school and the second being a very large community primary and have been happy with neither for various reasons. So, after about three years of reading about Home Education in various parenting magazines and books I have finally managed to convince my other half that we should give it a go. Our youngest two will finish school at Christmas and begin their Homeschool adventure as their elder sisters return to school after the holidays. We don't know where this will lead. Their father is adamant they will rejoin the system at secondary level. I prefer to wait and see how a year or two of Home Education will alter our view of things and am secretly still hanging on to the hope that he may one day allow us to take the older two out too. Who knows? I never imagined he would agree to deregistering the younger two so now I believe anything is possible!

So, there we are. In some ways it seems like a step backwards but in so many more ways it is a giant leap forwards. It is a decision that has not been taken lightly. Being solely responsible for two of my children's education is a daunting prospect and the day to day realities of this will undoubtedly have an effect on the whole family, but I am hopeful that the over all result will be positive.

This blog? I don't know. I'd love to think that I could still find the time for reflection but only time will tell. I know I will keep up with my other blog as I am keen to record our daily antics but I may well be leaving this one idle for a while, even if it's just whilst we adjust to our new way of life. So, I feel I should say farewell for the time being and thank you for reading.

I wish you all a wonderful Yule/Christmas (whatever applies)!

Love & Light
Talie
x

Mindfulness

"the Spirit of your past will echo through your Hallways

and the walls you leave behind will beathe your life."

~ Mostly Autumn

You matter. What you do matters. Every gesture you make, every thought you have, every step you take matters. Our lives cannot truly be our own for they impact on the lives of so many others. Be mindful in all that you do.

Touchstone Tuesday

Harnessing those moments of magic.

This Kitten whom I adore,
with her tiny skeleton
purrs her affection furiously
at me, the feeder, the petter.

Read more Touchstones at Creative Clutter and Holistic Mama and join in!

They Say What Breaks Us, Makes Us

They say what breaks us, makes us. I think about this a lot nowadays.

Five years ago I was heavily pregnant and happy. One year after that I was broken. I have learnt never to under-estimate just how much change can take place in just one year, just how quickly your world can fall apart. In one year all your worst nightmares can happen at once and your hopes and dreams be shattered.

I fear change now whether good or bad. I like to feel safe so I cling to the familiar with all my might.

People said I'd get through it with time. I doubted them. A couple of people even said it would make me stronger. I doubted them too. As time passes I'm beginning to realise that they were both right and wrong! If I ask myself the question; could I cope with the same chain of events all over again, then the answer is a definate no. It would kill me. And yet, I still consider myself strenghened by the experiences. In the past five years I have grown in ways I never new I could or needed to. I began as a feeble, unopinionated, pleaser and now a warrior woman (albeit one who is ironically scared of change) is emerging.

Faery Metropolis

Honest Blog Award!

I've been awarded this blog award with a difference by GreenWhisper! I have to say it is the most meaningful blog award I have ever received and I feel truly honoured to have received it. The award was originally created by The Purple Pixie in response to her Telling It Like It Is post.

WE ARE Honest Bloggers!

The Sisterhood of SHIfT HAPPENS!

As honest bloggers we:

(Cut, Copy, Paste, Delete, Add To...As You Wish)

* Speak our truth from the heart and tell it like it is.

* Share openly and honestly our true feelings without fear of judgement, Blame or shame.

* We write to share our achievements so others can also share our joy.

* We write about our bad times too, knowing that the love and support of others is around us and perhaps heal another’s pain in the process..

*We are human beings with real feelings and emotions and REFUSE to hide behind a mask.

* We dare to be different

* We are Free Spirits

* We realsie that by spilling out, we lighten our load.

* We acknowledge our strengths and weaknesses and don't see them in terms of success or failure.

* We laugh together and cry together
* We are all following our own journey in our own unique way
* Above all else, we may lie on the floor, screaming and kicking, or feel like life is collapsing around us once in a while….but at the end of the day, we drag ourselves up, dust ourselves off and rise to fight another day.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

A heart felt thank you GreenWhisper! I may well be passing this on in the near future but for now I'm just going to accept and feel flattered :-)

Breakfast. It's Berry Important!

When I started this blog one of my aims was to address my eating habits. So here I am ensuring that I get a healthy, nutritious start to the day.


Ingredients:
Organic Muesli base
Handful of Rasberries
Handful of Blueberries
Cranberry Juice

Method:
Combine the ingredients using as much Cranberry Juice as you like and adjusting the quantities to suit. Personally I like about 1/2 cupful of Muesli, stacks and stacks of berries and as little juice as I can possibly get away with, but one of my daughters prefers hers wetter and with less fruit so it comes down to personal taste.

Berries are full of good things, among them high levels of vitamin C. There's more about the health benefits of eating berries in this link; //nutrition.about.com/od/healthyfood1/a/berries.htm